IDT buys BAE unit

Integrated Defense Technologies Inc. of Huntsville, Ala., is buying BAE Systems' Advanced Systems operation in Gaithersburg, Md., paying the Farnborough, U.K., company $146 million in cash. The deal will close by the end of 2002. The purchase is contingent upon Hart-Scott-Rodino and other government approvals.

The BAE Systems' Gaithersburg operation, which employs more than 300 people, designs and manufactures high-performance radio frequency surveillance equipment used in signals intelligence applications. The business supplies U.S. and allied government agencies with high-quality surveillance and intercept equipment, and 65 percent to 70 percent of its sales are sole-source transactions.

IDT said the division is well-positioned to benefit from projected increases in intelligence spending and information technology intended to transform the U.S. military's intelligence and homeland security efforts.